Reading a Spell Entry
Every spell entry follows a standard format. Understanding each field lets you quickly answer "how far does it reach?", "can I cast this in a dungeon?", and "does it affect invisible targets?" — without reading the full description every time.
Spell Entry Fields
| Field | What it tells you |
|---|---|
| School (Subschool) | Which of the 8 schools this spell belongs to, and which subschool (if any). Affects immunities, Spell Focus feats, and dispelling. |
| [Descriptor] | Tags in brackets (e.g., [Fire], [Mind-Affecting]) flag elemental damage type, immunities, or alignment interactions. |
| Level | The spell's level for each class that can cast it. Sets the minimum slot required and the base save DC. |
| Casting Time | How long casting takes. Most are "1 standard action"; some are full-round, 1 minute, 10 minutes, or more. |
| Components | V (verbal), S (somatic), M (material), F (focus), DF (divine focus). Costly materials are listed with their price. |
| Range | How far away a target can be. See range categories below. |
| Target / Effect / Area | What the spell affects. See the target/area section below. |
| Duration | How long the effect lasts. See duration categories below. |
| Saving Throw | Whether targets get a save, and what partial or full success means. "None" means no save allowed. |
| Spell Resistance | Yes = caster must beat SR with a CL check. No = SR is ignored. |
Range Categories
| Category | Formula | At CL 1 | At CL 5 | At CL 10 | At CL 20 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal | Caster only | Always self only; CL irrelevant | |||
| Touch | Must touch target | Requires a touch attack; range is 0 | |||
| Close | 25 + 5 × (CL ÷ 2) ft | 30 ft | 35 ft | 50 ft | 75 ft |
| Medium | 100 + 10 × CL ft | 110 ft | 150 ft | 200 ft | 300 ft |
| Long | 400 + 40 × CL ft | 440 ft | 600 ft | 800 ft | 1,200 ft |
| Unlimited | Anywhere on the same plane | No distance limit; sight or link required | |||
Target, Effect, and Area
The spell affects specific creatures or objects. You must be able to see (or otherwise perceive) the target. SR and saving throws apply per-target.
The spell creates something (a ray, a summoned creature, an object). The effect itself may then require an attack roll or saving throw to affect a creature.
Affects all valid creatures/objects in a defined shape. SR and saving throws still apply individually. Area types: burst, emanation, spread, cone, line, cylinder.
| Area type | Shape | Line of effect? |
|---|---|---|
| Burst | Sphere from a point; affects all within, including behind cover | Yes — each creature individually |
| Emanation | Sphere from caster; moves with caster if concentration | Yes |
| Spread | Expands like gas, flows around corners | No — reaches around obstacles |
| Cone | Quarter-sphere from caster; width = length | Yes |
| Line | 5-ft-wide path from caster to range; affects everything in path | Yes |
| Cylinder | Circle from a point, extending up and/or down | Yes |
Duration Categories
| Category | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Instantaneous | Effect happens and is done; cannot be dispelled after the fact. |
| Concentration | Lasts as long as the caster concentrates (standard action each round); ends when the caster stops or fails a check. |
| Rounds/min/hours/days per level | Scales with CL. "1 round/level" at CL 5 = 5 rounds. |
| Concentration + X rounds | After the caster stops concentrating, continues for X more rounds. |
| Until discharged | Persists until the trigger condition occurs (e.g., contingency). |
| Permanent | Does not expire naturally; can be dispelled. Some require a save each day. |
| (D) | Dismissible — caster can end the spell as a standard action (or free action if within range of the effect). |
Saving Throw Results
| Save line text | What it means |
|---|---|
| Will negates | A successful Will save completely prevents the spell's effect on that creature. |
| Reflex half | Successful Reflex save takes half damage; failure takes full. |
| Fortitude partial | Successful Fort save reduces the effect (e.g., avoids secondary effect or reduces duration). |
| None | No saving throw; spell takes full effect. SR may still apply. |
| Disbelief | Illusion — only creatures who have reason to doubt the illusion get a save (Will). |
| Object (harmless) | Usually applies to a beneficial spell; the subject can decline to be affected. |
Spell Schools & Subschools
Every spell belongs to one of eight schools. Schools matter for Spell Focus feats, Wizard school specialization, and some creature immunities. Each school has one or more subschools that further classify spells.
| School | What it does | Subschools |
|---|---|---|
| Abjuration | Protection, dispelling, and banishing. Wards, barriers, and counterspells. | — |
| Conjuration | Bringing creatures or materials to the caster, or moving the caster elsewhere. | Calling, Creation, Healing, Summoning, Teleportation |
| Divination | Gathering information, detecting hidden things, predicting the future. | Scrying |
| Enchantment | Affecting the minds of creatures — charm, compulsion, sleep, fear. | Charm, Compulsion |
| Evocation | Channeling raw energy into damaging or manipulating forces. | — |
| Illusion | Deceiving the senses and creating false images or sounds. | Figment, Glamer, Pattern, Phantasm, Shadow |
| Necromancy | Manipulating life force — healing, harming, raising undead, draining. | — |
| Transmutation | Altering the physical properties of creatures and objects. | Polymorph |
| Universal | Rare spells that belong to no school and cannot be restricted by opposition schools. | — |
Common Descriptors
Descriptors appear in brackets after the school. They flag game-mechanical interactions: creatures immune to [Fire] take no damage from fire spells; [Mind-Affecting] spells don't affect mindless undead or constructs; [Emotion] spells can't stack with each other; alignment descriptors ([Good], [Evil], [Lawful], [Chaotic]) interact with class restrictions and holy/unholy objects. The spell's full text will list any special interaction in the description.